I can’t believe the 11th November 2020, marks 7 years since my life changing colostomy surgery. My stoma, affectionately called Rudolph, is now 7 years old! For those of you without a stoma it may seem a strange thing to celebrate. While it was life changing, it was also life saving and I will be … Continue reading Happy 7th Birthday To My Stoma….Otherwise Known As Rudolph
It's official! My spine is full of shenanigans and my Specialists can't quite find a way to fix it, not without creating even more shenanigans. My spine is completely unstable at l4/l5. L3/l4 isn't far behind it but the pain I experience from the severity of the instability at l4/l5, smothers pain I would be … Continue reading Spinal Shenanigans….It’s A Little Complicated
Have you looked at your Calendar at the start of a month and thought to yourself, " What on earth was I thinking. I can't possibly do all that!" I'm sure I'm not alone in this exclamation. As I scrolled through my calendar on my phone for the month ahead, I felt physically sick. It … Continue reading Calendar Chaos
You know that feeling when you are completing a jigsaw puzzle only to find that a piece is missing? It’s a devastating moment. Your stomach turns just a little. All that work, all that effort, all that anticipation of a final outcome. A completed picture was the awaiting reward but it’s been snatched away from … Continue reading Finding Your Way Through A Chronic Illness Conundrum
Only 3 months ago I was writing about how "surgery can't come soon enough" We knew even then there was a risk of surgery failing. We knew my bone disease was behaving erratically and had a mind of its own. Despite the risks of surgery failure we just didn't have a choice. We had to … Continue reading Here We Go Again…..Spinal Surgery Take Two!
I'm a week post L4/L5 laminectomy and decompression surgery. I've been home from hospital for 5 days and the road to recovery has begun. Well sort of. I really feel like I'm still in survival mode. My Surgeon tells me we did the right thing proceeding with this surgery. My spinal cord was severely compressed … Continue reading The Spinal Surgery Recovery Road
My Spinal Specialist appointment went well. I think that's the best description under the circumstances. I managed to walk to his office using my walker and I thought I was doing well. As I entered his room I smiled as brightly as possible. However the pain in my eyes and my inability to move faster … Continue reading Surgery Can’t Come Soon Enough!
How many times have you said, "No worries, that's as easy as......." I know I've said it countless times during my life. In fact that's how I used to live my life. Everything was seemingly easy and if it wasn't I could quickly convince myself it was. I had a positive can do, absolutely, yes … Continue reading It’s Never As Easy As……
I was sitting at our local cafe this week, which is situated on a Point overlooking the Bay and beautiful Islands beyond. It really couldn't be more idyllic and I am blessed to live so close to such a gorgeous place on Australia's east coast. As my husband and I were sipping our cool drinks … Continue reading The Tides of Chronic Illness
It's nearly 3 years since my left femur snapped in two. Those first two years I can barely remember. It's a blur of surgery after surgery, hospital stay after hospital stay, recovery after recovery. Actually recovery is probably the wrong word because I haven't recovered. My left femur is still broken. It's officially diagnosed as … Continue reading The Next “Leg” of My Journey
